Mumbai RTE lottery: Over 3,000 students allotted admissions in first round

Mumbai: Results of the first lottery for Right to Education (RTE) were announced on Tuesday, with 3,239 students having got admissions through this process. Students of weaker financial backgrounds can study for free in private unaided schools till Class 8 through online RTE admissions.

Under the RTE Act, 2009, 25 per cent seats in private unaided schools are reserved for marginalised students. Students of families with an annual income less than Rs 1 lakh can apply online for RTE admission. The elementary education of these students (from Class 1 to Class 8) is entirely funded by the state government.

The first lottery was conducted by education department of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). Around 2,151 students have been allotted admissions to Class 1 while 1,088 students have been allotted to pre primary. Parents can go to respective schools and secure admissions till March 24. The vacancies will then be declared by March 27 and the second lottery will be conducted from March 28 to 31. In total, three lottery rounds will be conducted.

This year there are over 10,505 applicants while the intake capacity is 8,341 seats in 347 private unaided schools. Mahesh Palkar, education officer conducting RTE admissions, said, “Through RTE admissions we aim to help students who cannot afford to pay high-end fees in private schools. Parents should realise and secure admissions in schools which they have been allotted instead of opting only famous schools. In this way, we can help all students to secure admissions and not deprive anyone of this opportunity.”

Certain private unaided schools of the state under Federation of Schools Association of Maharashtra (FSAM) are adamant about boycotting RTE admissions as the government has not reimbursed pending amount. According to these schools, an amount of Rs 800 crores is pending to be paid by the state since 2012.

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